


Tears in the sink

by DoctorMathematicae (GideonFluff)



Category: Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: Ableism, Accidental Bonding, Awkwardness, Comrades, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Injury, M/M, Medical Examination, Multiple Sclerosis, Physical Disability, Protectiveness, Science Boyfriends, Slow Build, Verbal Abuse, inner turmoil, internalized ableism
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-02-18
Updated: 2014-03-23
Packaged: 2018-01-13 00:21:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 14,933
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1205887
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GideonFluff/pseuds/DoctorMathematicae
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dr. Hermann Gottlieb's experiences during his work with the PPDC. How he tries to cope with some things, how he cannot cope with some, and how help sometimes comes from where one does not expect it.</p><p>Some of the tags have not come to effect yet, Rating will change later</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue and Welcome

**Author's Note:**

> ~This fic is going to have a slow build. There will be Hermann/Newton eventually but it will likely take several chapters until then, depending on how the story develops while I write it.
> 
> Also English is not my first language so if you spot any mistakes and point them out to me I would be grateful as I do not have somebody to proof-read my writing~

Like every day when he woke up, he checked the mail. Spam, spam, penis enlargement spam, spam, spam, a science newletter, another newsletter and _there_ it was.  
  
When the e-mail, that he had been officially been enlisted into the PPDC, arrived Hermann had been quite exstatic. He was going to to be able to implement his knowledge for something useful. It would also get him away from the prying eyes of the rest of his family who always 'worried' so much if he could 'manage'. Their annoying mother-henning was not only insulting but also made the second-youngest Dr. Gottlieb furious. After having gone through university education for three degrees, they still treated him as if he were a child. It was just another form of belittling him.  
  
But now Hermann had the chance to prove to everybody that he could do whatever he wanted to. After all he was a grown man, twenty six years old and very much able to take care of himself. He was married for god's sakes! They had no right to treat him like an infant because.. No. He would not allow this. Nobody would belittle him.  
  
Vanessa was understanding and supported his enlistment. Most likely since she knew there was no changing his mind in any case. They already had been struggling to spend time together with her job as a model and now it would be even more difficult, but they would manage.  
  
 _"We can always have video-chats. I bet they do have nice computers over there."_  That was all she said with a smile and wink. Hermann simply coughed slightly embarrassed at the implication and looked aside. She had always been the one to initiate the physical contact between them. Not that he did not find his wife beautiful or didn't enjoy touching her. It was simply that he felt unsure of himself. A side-effect of the constant doubts that were put into his mind by other people.  
  
Thinking back to the e-mail, the doctor did bite his lip at the thought of having to possibly do some base classes with men several heads taller and sporting bulging muscles while he had started to struggle with walking and lifting things a lot lately as his health detoriated. Hopefully they would have some kind of mercy on him.  
  
Naturally even as a scientist he had to enroll into basic Jaeger Academy classes, that was unavoidable, and the date was set for December 12th, 2015. Only two weeks. Well, obviously they did have to use every force they have as quickly as possible to control the threat of the Kaiju. Limping over to his laptop, Hermann wrote a message to his e-mail correspondent, he'd even dare say friend, Dr. Newton Geiszler.  
  
 **"Dear Dr. Geiszler,**  
  
 **I have good news. They have enlisted me for the Jaeger Academy and I will join it in two weeks.**  
 **Sadly that may possibly mean I will have less time to write and discuss theories with you,**  
 **but I am sure you understand as you know how important this is. Perhaps you should apply as well,**  
 **they could surely use your knowledge about biology. Maybe they could even get you kaiju samples to study.**  
  
 **That may allow to make major breakthroughs in strategies on how to defend against them.**  
  
 **Furthermore I have read your newest paper on the cell degeneration that occurs in contact with**  
 **the Kaiju Blue and it is quite fascinating. If you find out anymore about it's properties I would be**  
 **delighted if you shared them with me.**  
  
 **High regards, Dr. Gottlieb"**  
  
When the message was sent, Hermann smiled and reached for his phone, looking for the app he used to track how he felt every day and noted that today he felt pretty well, if slightly anxious.  
  
~~~~  
  
Thirteen days later, he was packing his bags for his departure for the Jaeger Academy on Kodiak Island. Hermann always traveled light if he could, but he knew that he would likely not return home for years, so he did pack some thing as reminders. Mainly a Chumash, the printed version of the Tora scroll, a Bavarian whip used for the tradition of "Aperschnalzen" which was basically competitive whip-cracking to drive the winter away and last but not least a small Union Jack since he had deeply enjoyed teaching in Oxford after having finished his education in Berlin.  
  
Naturally his whole family was pestering him if he was 'sure this was a good idea'. With a decisive snort, he unplugged the telephone in his small apartment, turned off his phone and then continued neatly folding, bending and storing things into his two suitcases. Including the cane he had started to use for longer walks. Scowling at it shortly, he sighed and carefully disassembled it into three parts and put it into the box with the other necessities he was bringing along. Medicine, his medical history for the PPDC doctors if it ever was needed and some small aids like a hot water bottle and some cooling packs, depending on what was needed.  
  
No matter how determinted he was to prove himself, Dr. Gottlieb could not deny that he was nervous. Okay that was an understatement, he was absolutely terrified.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
 **December 12th, 2015**  
  
A date that Hermann Gottlieb would never forget.  
  
Arriving at the Jaeger Academy, the large complex set inside a valley between several large mountains that seemed to mostly lack any kind of flora and fauna, he stepped out of the helicopter and...  
  
fell.  
  
That sure was a great well to start a historic day in his life. But strangely enough he did not hurt. Nor did he feel the sticky wetness of blood on his face. What he did feel were two big, strong hands steadying him. Slowly he opened one eye only to come face to face with the one and only Stacker Pentecost. The great Jaeger pilot he had admired for years. Turning several shades of scarlet he started rambling apologies how he should not be so clumsy and how sorry he was.  
  
Stacker simply smiled and and helped him down the last few steps of the helicopter ladder. "Don't worry about it Dr. Gottlieb. I'm Stacker Pentecost and I will be overseeing the training whenever I am not on a mission. I understand you situation and I do want you to know that you are welcome to join in whenever you feel ready to, and stop yourself when you are in pain or discomfort. You don't need to match up to anyone and if there is ever any problem, you can always come to me. Alright?"  
  
Hermann found himself to be a bit awestruck. He had not expected such a nice welcome. Certainly not in a military operation like this. It took him a few moments to find his voice after they had started making their way over to the main complex. "I uhm... Thank you very much Sir. You have my gratitude."  
  
Another friendly smile was made in his direction before they simply walked along in silence. Well a short silence since Hermann could not contain a small squeak at the fact that _his favorite Jaeger pilot was carrying his suitcases for him_. Apparently Penetcost found his reaction rather amusing and chuckled.  
  
~~~~  
  
But it did seem that people had noticed that something was off with a pilot carrying his suitcases for him. Because he got some scathing looks that made him turn a few shades paler and hang his head slightly while walking. When they had reached his room and he had been instructed on where the first official welcome talk to the new academy students would be held, Stacker excused himself and left Hermann to unpack his things.  
  
Or rather sit on the bed in the small, cold room and swallow hard at the nervous knot that seemed to be formed in his throat. Briefly he considered calling Vanessa but he did not want to disturb her or have her worry about him unecessarily. No, he just needed to build walls. Let the looks bounce off them.  
  
Carefully he unpacked his laptop and decided to write Dr. Geiszler instead.  
  
That would get his mind back on the science. And that was the most important aspect of being here.  
  
 **"Dear Dr. Geiszler,**  
  
 **I have arrived at the Jaegaer Academy safely. It is rather ginormous. And you may won't believe it,**  
 **but I was greeted by Stacker Penetecost himself! He is as charming and nice as he appears in his**  
 **Television appearances I must say.**  
  
 **How is your report on Kaiju stem cells going? Have you made progress?**  
  
 **High regards, Dr. Gottlieb."**  
  
Pondering things for a few moments, the scientist started setting into his room, opening the curtains and the small window to let in soem fresh air. He'd better get used to being cold so he might start right away. Inwardly he kicked himself for not having packed a warm blanket and his winter coat.  
  
~~~~  
  
What Dr. Hermann Gottlieb had been prepared for had been a standard 'welcome to the PPDC' speech and some warning. What he had not been prepared for, was being called on the podium. As soon as he heard his name being called, he felt as if his blood had turned to ice and was trying to push out of his veins in shards. No. Not the podium.  
  
"Dr. Gottlieb is our newest addition to the new K-Science unit, some of you may have heard his name as he has contributed to the Mark-1 Jaeger Program Coding. Would you please join me for a moment, doctor?"  
  
God no. This was a nightmare come through. It was not because of standing in front of a crowd. He was very much used to that, having taught whole halls full of students. But this was with a focus on HIM rather than the teaching material. With shaking hands, he made his way on the podium, making a pained grimace when he had to climb a high step to get onto it. Hermann saw some young men in the crow sneering or laughing and tried not to focus on it.  
  
"We will be recruiting more scientist to be the backbone of our offense. We need genius to support our strong offense because obviously the best Jaegers and pilots won't help if we don't know how to effectively stop the Kaiju permanently. I implore you to be respectful to each other and support each other in your growth."  
  
For a moment it seemed like he was expected to say something but he simply stayed silent. Luckily that seemed to change the mind of the one holding the welcome-speech and he was finally released to return on his seat. As Hermann was making his way through the rows of chairs looking up to look for Stacker since he felt proud that his contributions had been mentioned, somebody stuck up a leg and tripped him.  
  
It didn't need saying that he ended up falling like a stone as he had been too busy looking for the man he so admired instead of looking at the floor like he usually did and hissed at the pain it caused him. While the offending student was expelled after a furious Stacker Pentecost had insisted on it, it still left a mark. His face stayed a mask made of stone after this and he would not allow himself such a mistake again, isolating himself and not seeking out company while here, not even from Stacker who had been so welcoming. There would no more emotion that would be used against him.  
  
~


	2. Day One at the Academy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~PPDC classes that are not theoretical? Not Hermann's thing. For multiple reasons.~

Since the Welcome Speech had been in the evening the first official day of being at the Academy only was starting the next day. Hermann woke up to his body complaining about the fetal position he had ended up sleeping in out of discomfort at both the cold in the room, the unfamiliarity of it and his experience yesterday.  
  
Before doing anything else he had a short talk with Vanessa, reassuring her that he was fine.  
  
 _"Yes, don't worry about it."_  
  
 _"No, I did hurt myself."_  
  
 _"Yes, I promise to call when something happens."_  
  
 _"Very well. Take care too."_

Grabbing his usual preferred set of clothing, he limped over to the showers, not using hi cane as he still tended to forget that he actually had this aid. It was also still bothering him that he would need to rely on such a thing when he had been perfectly able to walk before. Well, not perfectly but he had not needed any aid. If he was honest to himself, Dr. Gottlieb was not taking his own illness very well. When it had been diagnosed, he had scowled and from that moment on forbade both himself and everybody else to bring it up unless absolutely required for important reasons.  
  
If there were people here who knew him from before, they would have noticed how his posture had begun to change. Not only because of his body not being quite able to support him properly, but also because he was retreating mentally. Shutting everybody out because he did not want to be hurt again. Anybody who did greet him in the hallways, not many but there were a few fellow scientists who had been here longer, was met with a short curt nod and no change of expression.  
  
Only Stacker was greeted with a short, almost shy "Good Morning, Sir." which was answered with a "Morning Dr. Gottlieb" and a small smile.  
  
Since the PPDC was a military institution there were no private showers. Only general showers for the men, for the women. Not even options for people of other gender identities as Hermann noted with a small scowl. After checking that there were not too many people around, he moved into the men's shower and put his change of clothes on a bench close-by before undressing and turning up the warm water. Luckily it seemed that nobody was staring or leering. No, Hermann was not homophobic or afraid of being looked at by other men. What he did scare of were other people judging the signs of illness on his body.  
  
It was obvious that he was underweight. His ribs did stick out noticeably when he moved. It was not his fault, he simply could not nourish himself enough because of various reasons. His pale skin tended to be reddened with patches of red and scratched-up skin because of Pruritis. Itching that was not really there, a misinformation of his brain that made his skin itch like crazy sometimes. When his symptoms worsened a bit, his pupils sometimes did not stay the same size. When that happened he would usually hastily put on his glasses to hide that fact. Having grown up in Bavaria, by far the most traditional and old-fashioned part of Germany, the young scientist was afraid of sticking out wrong. The less people noticed him, the better.  
  
Turning the water almost scalding hot he hissed lightly and let the steam hide him and make all of his skin red, so it was at least uniformly one color, once.   
  
~~~~  
  
After a meager standardized breakfast compromised of oatmeal and a glass of milk (the other options simply would not agree with his stomach at all because of their artificial sweetness), it was time for the first class. Luckily a theoretical one on the PONS equipment. Naturally Hermann was bored out of his mind because he knew all of this, but it was mandatory for him to attend because of formality and bureaucracy and that was one thing he was pretty much used to, being German.  
  
The second class though was a physical one. Well, it was not so much a class but rather a general test of what they were and were not able to do physically to place their level of fitness. Nevertheless, it was humiliating having people watch him while he struggled to lift the smallest weight they had set out there and the smallest barriers. Naturally the one overseeing them, regrettably not Stacker Pentecost who had been so nice and understanding, had no tolerance for him and no patience for the fact that he was disabled.  
  
"Gottlieb, I know you're a scientist but you could at least  _try._ " Was added as commentary while he was currently fighting to get over a small hurdle, trying his best not to start crying at how much that strained him and how much more energy it cost to hide the intention-tremor that appeared when trying to hold onto the edge of it.  
  
Some of the others grinned and Hermann turned bright red, ground his teeth and was unable to stop himself before snapping at the offending coach. "Oh really now? I dare you to break your legs and then run a marathon then, if you are going to make unfair demands! You could at least  _try_ , even though you are an insensitive brute." Jaws throughout the room dropped and the coach was actually stunned into silence, not having expected a 'nerdy' scientist to snap back at him like that.  
  
Luckily the guy did not seem to be offended by his snapping due to the unexpected shock and left him to his struggles while he did the rest of the necessary tests before limping off to the medical wing to get some painkillers. Dr. Gottlieb would direly need them to get through the rest of the day.  
  
~~~~  
  
The doctor in the medical wing was nice, yes. But dear god, Hermann already had been having not so much of a great day and he just wanted a Fentanyl patch. It didn't even have to be a high dose, just so he could manage moving around to get to the afternoon classes. But the doctor had noticed his tremor, unfortunately and not was pestering him about it.  
  
"It is in treatment and of no significance. Please, I just need something for the pain so I can return to the classes." Clenching his shaking hand, Hermann was trying his best not to loose his temper yet again. Why did he suddenly feel so much anger? Well he had never been a a lamb nor extremely passive but this was just a time-bomb of rage ticking constantly under his skin and in his mind. Perhaps it was simply the stress from being so far away from home and from the things he knew and was used to.  
  
The doctor, her name was Melanie Wong if he remembered right, kept pressing on despite his obvious resistance to the topic and expressed wish against any kind of extra treatment. "How can you say that Dr. Gottlieb? That is clearly a severe tremor. Your symptoms are worsening, this could be an acute attack soon! We should get you Prednol and perhaps take you off the classes for now."  
  
"I said it is dealt with. We will do no such thing, because you do not have my permission to do so. So either you will help me manage my pain so I may return to my classes  _or_ I will simply endure the pain and stay far away from this medical wing, no matter what you say. You cannot force me into treatment and I very much know my rights." His voice had turned from annoyed and strained to scathingly aggressive. It was starting to become his number one defense mechanism it seemed. Mostly because it seemed to make people back off when being nice and polite did not.  _'What kind of world was this where one had to be snappy to be given any sort of respectful distance?'_  was the bitter thought running through his head as he placed the Fentanyl patch on his shoulder himself and moved to fetch his cane from his room before the next class.  
  
~~~~  
  
After the afternoon class that had involved some more physical tests, endurance of all things!, Hermann was standing in front of the administrative office and knocked carefully. When being called in, the overseer was doing a double-take. "Dr. Gottlieb? What in the blazes happened to you?"  
  
Taking a moment to answer after the strain of walking in, he took together the rest of his energy to talk. "I must inform you that I am not able to partake in anymore physical tests unless the PPDC has a way of using my knowledge while I am bedridden and under heavy painkillers." His throat was making some whistling sounds as he talked because his muscles were simply starting to protest against being used altogether. It seemed that his pathetic display of trying to look normal was effective because he was pulled from all physical classes with immediate effect with a special order, without it being marked down in his folder.  
  
He did have to do double the theory classes though, but it was better to be bored than to be in agony.  
  
~~~~  
  
When finally all classes were over for the day, Dr. Gottlieb all but fell onto his bed, barely able to pull his laptop close enough to read the new messages and documents received, while writing a few lines to his friend before Hermann passed out into a deep dreamless sleep fueled by exhaustion in his clothes, with his laptop still running and the soft shine of the screen illuminating his face in the small room.  
  
"Dr. Geiszler  
  
If you do enroll for the PPDC prepare yourself for ruthless physical classes.  
Admittedly I feel as if a Category 1 Kaiju had stomped on me with 0.07% of it's weight  
not including the calculation for how my bones would fare in that scenario but I do believe  
you get my gist.  
  
Tired Regards, Dr. Gottlieb  
  
PS: I read the report you send me yesterday morning.  
You made a small calculation error in the second line, twenty-third character, though.   
It should be  not  if you wanted to calculate the reductability and not the proportionality."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ~The next chapter is going to be the first time Hermann and Newton meet. Also more development.~


	3. The Great Science Convention of 2016

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~Hermann meets his long-time online friend Dr. Newton Geiszler. The man is frankly not at all like he expected him to be, judging by his online behavior.~

**January 8th, 2017**  
  
 **~Morning~**  
  
When matters had been defused with him not being required to do the physical classes anymore, it became a lot more endurable to go through the Jaeger Academy. Which lead to Hermann talking more and more to Dr. Geiszler online when he had free time, as his wife Vanessa was currently in Milan and as she had written him very busy. They respected each other's work a lot. Even if Dr. Gottlieb admittedly did not care even a little bit for fashion. But they each had their own passions and ways to keep the world at bay and distance.  
  
It turned out that both he and Newton would be attending the Worldwide Science Convention this year (the years before one of them always had been unable to attend for various reasons)  
  
 _"Dr. Gottlieb_  
 _I have some amazing news!_  
 _Since my current project went really well_  
 _and I can afford a small break I'll be on SciCon2017_  
 _Are you gonna be there too?"_  
  
 _"Dr. Geiszler_  
 _I will be there, yes._  
 _The event falls into the time period where I will_  
 _be able to attend it without having to find work-around._  
 _I surmise you would like to meet?_  
 _Dr. Gottlieb."_  
  
 _"Dr. Gottlieb_  
 _Are you kidding? Of course I want to meet you!_  
 _We have been having great science discussions and_  
 _you don't hate me yet so I think we'll get along._  
 _I think you'll find me easy enough._  
 _Gonna hold a presentation on Kaiju Cells."_  
  
They both got rather giddy and excited about it. After all, they seemed to understand each other well on an intellectual level, even if they did not pursue the same sciences, and so far their interactions had been very pleasant. It wasn't often that it so happened that a person resonated well with Hermann Gottlieb in any way.  
  
The convention was in the exact period of time between Hermann finishing the Academy and getting transferred to his first job assignment at a Shatterdome (Apparently most likely Vladivostok since they were currently having a shortage in their science department, with many Russian Mathematicians having been sent to the ridiculous Wall of Life project to help the architects.)  
  
So, Hermann and Newton had decided to meet-up at the convention when time allowed it. Little did they know how it would turn out, naturally. Who would? Not even a genius scientist could properly calculate a meeting between two minds that brilliant yet so startlingly different.  
  
 **~~~~**  
  
 **January 8th, 2017**  
  
 **~Late Morning~**  
  
The first readings were about to start and dear god. Dr. Gottlieb did hate those Conventions. They mostly involved scientists bragging to each other and a very much primitive competition on who is going to get the most funding. Not to even mention the social pressure on being 'presentable' and 'acceptable'. But the fact that he was going to meet an actually esteemed colleague whose work he very much found interesting was lighting up his day a bit.  
  
People who only knew him from work, would never know that he even owned a suit. But yes, Hermann Gottlieb did own more than two sets of clothes. Don't get your hopes up though! It is not a nice suit. It is a classic British cut, in a horrid beige color that made Hermann look pale enough to be a dead. The slight green in his complexion at the moment as he did tend to get nauseous when anxious, did not help the look either. Clutching his cane, that was now starting to become a part of his body it seemed as he got used to it, he glanced around the main hall of the convention.  
  
Giving a pained wry smirk at a greeting here and there when suddenly his eyes widened a bit when he noticed a man who looked like he should be providing the music rather than scientific theories on the podium. Talking about Kaiju cells. Dear god no. There were two very much visible tattoos on his arms, his shirt sleeves were rolled up and the dress vest he was wearing did not deter the fact that he was wearing black JEANS. On an official event. It took all his effort to remember the good manners taught to him and not grimace at this philistine to be so improper.   
  
Was this really the esteemed Dr. Geiszler he had talked so pleasantly with the last few years? ... It was hard to process and he found himself staring open-mouthed until he got an amused glance from one of his former professors which brought him back to reality.  
  
 **~~~~**  
  
 **January 8th, 2017**  
  
 **~Early Afternoon~**  
  
When Newton had finished his presentation, he soaked in the polite applause like a rock star and got off the podium with a huge grin. Apparently he knew what to look for and made a beeline for Hermann waving excitedly. "Hey! Hermann! It's me, Newton. I mean you probably got that already from my stage introduction but yeah. Dude I am so happy to finally meet you, even if you look a bit like a stuffy-old professor but we all have our thing, right? So I did a bit of research on you and found out you use a cane. It's something degenerative isn't it? One of my degrees is medicine and your posture tells me your muscles are not able to keep you all straight up. Whoops. Shouldn't have said that... Forget that."  
  
Gottlieb blinked a few times and slightly opened his mouth in shock. Did this man not have any kind of brain-to-mouth filter? Slowly the words were starting to sink in and a scowl started to form on his face, regarding Newton as if he had just thrown a grenade at him. "... Dr. Geiszler. I would very much prefer if you would be quiet for a moment. As a biologist you should know that breathing is rather essential. Are you always that rude on first meetings? Perhaps I should not have expected much from a biologist."  
  
A few of the other scientists around them went _'ohhhhh'._ As if this were some bloody high-school drama. For christ's sake. What was next? Z-snapping?  
  
" _DUDE_. You did not just mock biology. That is like the most awesomest field when dealing with Kaiju. You can't calculate how their cells work or how to destroy them in the most effective way,  _when you have no data, Count von Count!"_   
  
That one drew an audible gasp from the other scientist and made him grip his cane so hard that his fingers turned slightly red from the strain. "How _DARE_ you! Perhaps you should go back to dissecting toads instead of offending the experts on _real sciences!"_   
  
By then people had to physically separate them from each other because Hermann was close to using his cane as a weapon and Newton looked like he was very keen on giving the other a noogie. That should be the first fight they ever had. And the one to actually bring them closer because they never left each other's memory after that.  
  
 **~~~~  
  
January 8th, 2017**  
  
 **~Evening~**  
  
Sitting in his hotel room later, the mathematician ended up putting his hands over his face in an attempt to not smash something in unadulterated rage. Never before had a single person drawn so much emotion from him in a single conversation before. That was a fact that he did _not_ want to think about. Because that meant Hermann would have to try and analyze what it meant.  
  
So he consulted the one person he always consulted when he was at a loss on emotional situations, his wife. Many people did not understand their relationship. It was less of a traditional romantic marriage but actually more like two best friends with benefits. They respected each other, they supported and listened. But they also left space to each other.  
  
Since he really needed it, Hermann was violently ranting to Vanessa over Skype on how awful his online friend had turned out to be and she had listened patiently, nodding occasionally and smiling softly. When the raging scientist had finished and calmed down a little she giggled and chipped in a little "You _really_ like him, don't you?"  
  
Which ended up with him ranting some more.


	4. The Shatterdome of Vladivostok

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~Hermann finds out that the Cherno Alpha Team is not quite like he expected them to be and ponders his meeting with Newton while having a huge lab mostly to himself.~

After the science convention, Hermann had been cited to the administrators office. Already he was excited because that would likely mean he would be told which Shatterdome he would be transferred to. Smoothing down his hair a little before knocking, he leaned onto his cane and waited until being called in before opening the door to the main office of the Jaeger Academy.   
  
"Dr. Gottlieb. You have finished the required base training, so you are to be transferred into active duty into a Shatterdome, as you know. Since the science department in Vladivostok has sent urgent request for support, you will be transferred there. You have a few days to commission... supplies and aids you may require while there as the climate has a much more extreme cycle. Any questions?" Hermann simply shook his head and a fierce look of determination was stuck on his face.   
  
Russia.   
  
That was more than agreeable. It would do him some good that he had learned Russian as a fifth language in university. Many people thought him to be a one-trick-pony with his maths and physics. But Gottlieb was rather good at languages, history and a few other things as well. One had to acquire a broad knowledge when teaching at school and regularly jumping in for other teachers. That was his one weakness... Not being able to say no to people he respected. Luckily nobody had abused that too much yet.  
  
~~~~   
  
Naturally Vanessa immediately sent him a few things for his stay in Russia with an expensive fast mail-service which had him hissing at her for almost half an hour before quietly adding a small 'thank you' to her amusement. Lucky for them both she knew that he was simply worried how she was going to manage with such an expense in these hard times of war and worldwide chaos. When he spotted a pair of frilly silk lingerie in between the various warm sweater vests, blankets and other things, he called Vanessa and inquired if she had accidentally put one of her panties in the package.   
  
"No you dummy~ Look at the size. That would never fit my hips. Those are obviously for you, when you happen to ever meet your scientist buddy that you like so much again." Cue another round of Ness being very much amused (not to say laughing herself silly) and Hermann screaming until he was red-faced and veins started popping up.   
  
~~~~   
  
When he arrived in the Shatterdome a few days later, Hermann was too busy being in awe to notice the two, frankly large, entities closing in on him. Only when a loud rumbling voice addressed him did he jump out of daydreaming. "Ahhh! You must be Comrade Gottlieb, da? Welcome! I will take belongings and Sasha will take you."   
  
Before he could ask what that was supposed to mean, Hermann was hauled up into a pair of strong arms and carried up a flight of stairs that he could never have made, not even with his cane. While he was inwardly grateful for the unasked assistance as it spared him, well, asking.... It was rather awkward to be carried by this Russian giant, while his equally imposing _wife?_ carried all of his luggage like it was a tiny pick-nick basket.   
  
"Большое спасибо (Thank you very much.) But I really don't want to impose on you... I'm sure I can make the rest by myself." He tried to awkwardly pry himself out of being carried but he was being held tightly and securely. It made him feel like he could survive a Kaiju attack in these arms. A strange thought indeed. "Nyet, doctor. Comrade Pentecost warned us to take good care of you. High stairs dangerous for injured people. Also you are weighted like feather. So are your cases, so do not worry. We will take care of you and work together. Scientists important for mission."   
  
Sasha looked pleased with herself when Hermann turned red-faced but stopped resisting and together they all moved to the big laboratory that was it's own building apart from the training halls of the pilots and other institutions as it had several large electrical transformers close-by to keep up enough electricity for the advanced machinery inside.   
  
That also meant he would have to to be assisted every time he wanted to get out of the lab. His defeated expression was regarded with worry and Aleksis immediately piped up at Sasha through their still remaining connection from their last drift which never quite seemed to completely fade.   
  
//Do you think the little scientist is homesick? We should get him some German beer.//   
  
//No I think he is shy. Does not like depending on people, Aleksis. We have to show him that it is not bad when people help.//   
  
Unaware of their silent conversation, Dr. Gottlieb was already mentally preparing a form for requesting some special kinetic bandages, a brace for his left knee and shoe spikes.   
  
The Kaidonovskys had no idea just how stubborn their new scientist was.   
  
~~~~   
  
To Vanessa and anyone who dared to ask, Hermann still vehemently claimed that he abhorred Dr. Geiszler and how terrible he found him to be. But they had still kept their online contact after their disastrous meeting. It had simply changed from pretentious politeness and fake interesting to pointing out the errors in each other's work and teasing each other.   
  
And if he was honest to himself: Dr. Gottlieb was not only getting more productive because of it but also he got a kick out of it in general. It actually was an activity he enjoyed, arguing with Newton.   
  
Apparently he was not the only one who noticed because people in the science departments all over were already making jokes on how they were the very equivalent of Spock and McCoy. Pointedly ignoring those comments, Gottlieb simply sneered that he would not be compared to an green-blooded Alien. Yes, perhaps he was a tad xenophobic. It wasn't like he did not have any good reason not too after seeing the reports of the destruction the Kaiju had caused.   
  
~~~~   
  
As it turned out the Russian laboratory was very lonely but also very much to his liking. The technology was mostly up to date, there were no annoying people telling him what exactly he could use when like in university and he could research to his hearts content. When they were not a mission, the Cherno Alpha team occasionally dropped in to look after him in an almost motherly fashion which embarrassed him as much as it was appreciated.   
  
They usually brought tea, a nice warm meal from the mess hall (which tasted better than the microwaved ones he stuck to so he did not have to leave the lab) and shared stories on how they battled the Kaiju. Sometimes they would play chess against Hermann and it felt more like playing against one person, rather than two.   
  
Also Dr. Gottlieb was still writing Dr. Geiszler, naturally. Just now he had found a big calculation error in the newest paper the other scientist was about to publish and had to fight the urge to jump around like he had just discovered something of the importance of the Higgs Boson Particle. When he realized how ridiculous he was being, Hermann coughed and looked around despite being alone, awkwardly moving back to his desk and mailing his discovery over along with an e-mail full of catty insults.   
  
Maybe he should get new energy cells for the mainframe from the stock room...   
  
That should be manageable with the knee brace.   
  
~~~~   
  
"You are very silly for a scientist that is actually smart, Comrade Gottlieb."   
  
That was the first thing he heard after regaining consciousness. What had happened? After a few more moments Hermann opened his eyes and noted that he was wearing the long black wool-coat Vanessa had sent him. Ah! Yes. The doctor had tried to master the Russian stairs of Doom on his own. Now he was faced with both Sasha and Aleksis scowling down at him both worried and displeased.   
  
"We told you to call. This is no good!" Gulping a little at the tone from that loud booming voice, he retreated back into his little mental shell. It sounded too much like the times his father had told him he was worthless.   
  
"Shhh! You are scaring him." Was whispered at Aleksis before Sasha continued the talk. "We are just worried about you friend doctor! No harm, da? Please just call next time. It really is no bother for us and you should not be hurt again on our watch ever again."   
  
With a loud sigh, he simply nodded, regretting it instantly when it made his head split in a terrible headache.   
  
His bony shoulders were being pressed down onto the - it was a bed, not his bed as he noticed suddenly in slight shock- by two pairs of rough but gentle hands, so he did not even think about trying to resist. "Now sleep. You work too much."   
  
He had no idea which one of the two had said that, to be honest as he was already drifting off into a deep mostly dreamless sleep.


	5. Goodbye, Kaidonovskys/ G'day Hansens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~Hermann never would have thought that a pair of Jaeger pilots would become his new family. Saying goodbye for several years was not easy when you never knew if you'd see each other again. Also Chuck is being a terrible brat. He can't help it quite yet.~

Slowly he was settling into the new work space and even getting used to letting the Kaidonovskys help him. But that also meant ONLY them. Everybody else who tried was shot down with a glare and told to find something else to do. It was not easy to trust people with something both as essential and intimate as one's disability. 

Especially when it was starting to get more and more visible as his illness progressed. Sometimes when he had bad flare-ups, he would spent weeks in the infirmary of the Russian Shatterdome, hoping for them to be over. Apparently his body did not stand the climate of Vladivostok well.

The winters were cold and unforgiving but the summers could also be extremely warm and even rainy. Sometimes the weather changed so fast that it turned him bedridden in pain and suffering, whether by migraines or flares, it was getting worse. Which was why without Hermann's knowledge, the Russian team had signed a form with a heavy heart, asking for the doctor to be sent to a Shatterdome with a more even climate for his well-being. 

They did not like letting go of their favorite stubborn German, who was so unlike the other scientists they had met before, which had assumed that they were stupid or average simply because they were not scientists. But the same way they didn't treat Dr. Gottlieb like he was any less worth as a person for his handicaps, the doctor had not judged them based on what they appeared to be like the others. It was a strong bond of mutual respect.

~~~~

Which was why Hermann was frankly more than upset when he suddenly got a message from PPDC Headquarters with his almost immediate official draw to the Sydney Shatterdome. Well, it would likely be more agreeable with his health. Warm summers, mild winters and rainfall throughout the year was endurable. But it felt terrible to be going after he had finally made .... family. He would not say friends. Sasha and Aleksis were more guardians than 'buddies'. Printing out the e-mail, he sighted and pressed the small button that would alert them to his inquiry for their presence.

A few minutes later their marched through the door in their usual stomping synchronized rhythm which made the scientist smirk despite his inner turmoil. Without saying anything, he handed the letter to Sasha since she was more comfortable with reading in English than Aleksis. "You are leaving us, Comrade Gottlieb." At her tone, he found something odd. They had known this.

His eyes shot up from their position on the floor to glare at them accusingly. Aleksis actually fidgeted around a bit. It was startlingly amusing to watch this huge man fidget under the glare of the not so very impressive Hermann Gottlieb.

"Yes, we send message to Comrade Pentecost..." Aleksis started the sentence and naturally Sasha finished it like they did so often. Their post-drift connection was rather fascinating. "You are getting more ill here, doctor. That is not good. We worry." Knowing that they were sending him away because they worried and not because they thought he had outlived his usefulness or the sort was a relief to Hermann who was prone to such thoughts, no matter how much he knew that they were ridiculous.

"... I will miss the both of you." It was not easy for Dr. Gottlieb to say so, as he was neither a man of big emotions, nor did he know how to express them most of the time. His eyes were getting wet but he refused to let any tears fall. A moment later he found himself in a gentle bear hug by both of the pilots.

"Oh, silly doctor! We will miss you too. Shatterdome here will not be same without you." Aleksis nodded in agreement to the words of his wife and they both ended up holding the scientist far longer than the conventional hug until Hermann shyly ended up asking if they could let go for a moment since he needed to breathe.

~~~~

When he was limping over to the plan that was going to bring him to Australia, Aleksis was actually shedding a few tears and waved after him while Sasha saluted him with a smile that looked much like a mother sending off their son to war. It did not make leaving any easier and he barely found the energy to wave back before failing to climb the stairs of the plane. God how he bloody hated stairs and the way they made his life more of a bother than it had to be.

At least it gave Aleksis the joy of carrying him into the plane a last time before he was hushed out by the co-pilot since they were on a tight schedule.

On the flight to Sydney, Dr. Gottlieb spent most of the flight either staring out of the window wistfully, reading some of the Russian books Aleksis had given him ("Because long flight is very boring."), or sleeping in his seat. Which was not comfortable at all but it really was a damn long flight.

During which he discovered that the German Translations of Pushkin's works had not done them justice at all while reading them in their original tongue and the same rule goes for Tolstoy and Dostoyevsky. And that the Ukrainian Hardcore music Sasha had given him as a farewell present was actually really good. But hell was freezing open if he ever publicly admitted that. But he would send them both a letter of thanks as soon as he arrived in Australia, that was for sure.

~~~~

Sydney had been a very beautiful city before the attack of 2014. The unharmed side was still beautiful but lacked life since people were still suffering from the effects the attack had on life there. A sad sight. 

But Hermann noticed one thing about the Australians he found both slightly annoying and admirable: They were incredibly and hardily optimistic. Despite the terrible situation there were smiling and laughing people everywhere around the Sydney Shatterdome. Not that the Russians hadn't been in good spirits, no!

But they had been much more like the steady work-focused determination that Hermann embodied. So this new environment made him feel out of place. Even if the local people tried to make him feel welcome mostly.

The Striker Eureka Team was on a mission so he only met them later. But he did their dog. Yes, an animal. A pet. In a Shatterdome. The rules here were a lot more relaxed than in Academy or Vladivostok.

Max the bulldog ended up being Hermann's substitute social contact because dogs were easier to deal with than humans. They did not ask unpleasant questions and they were engaging despite being unable to to talk about science. That wasn't all he wanted in a companion anyways. And the Hansens did not seem to mind that their furry friend was taking refuge in the labs while his owners were working. In fact it became sort of a ritual.

Sometimes when he felt well enough, he'd even throw toys for Max and one time he played tug. But Dr. Gottlieb had quickly noted that playing tug with a bulldog was not a good idea by how his arm hurt afterwards. Such power in such a compact small being... There ended up a calculation of Max's tugging power on one of his many chalkboards that he had accumulated while here and nobody dared to ask.

Also people stayed silent when they ended up seeing the ever-grumpy Dr. Gottlieb giving belly-rubs to a happy bulldog. They did not want to invoke his yelling, glaring wrath which had become infamous, despite his calm and pleasant stay in Russia. naturally the news of his catfight with Newton Geiszler had spread around like a wildfire since people grasped at anything vaguely amusing in such hard times.

~~~~

When Dr. Gottlieb finally did end up meeting the Striker Eureka Team, he did note two things:  
\- Chuck was almost as bad with brain-to-mouth-filtering as Newton  
\- Hercules Hansen gave off the same aura of gentle superiority that Stacker usually had but that did not seem to have effect on his son.

The pilots had spotted the scientist just as he was talking a short walk with Max, who then spotted his owners and yowled, barked and then ran over to them to excitedly greet them. Hermann was confused for a short second before getting sight of the Hansens as well. And jesus they did look quite intimidating as well in their drift gear. Even the young Chuck who was barely a grown up.

"Oi! Yer the science bloke who looked after our doggy prince charming?" Was hollered over at him by Chuck who promptly got elbowed in the side by his father. "What me son wanted t' say is: Thanks for lookin' after Max an' it's nice t' meet ya Dr. Gottlieb. I did get the name right, did I? If not I'm sorry-" Just as Hermann was about to return the greeting, the young Mr. Hansen piped in again with an eye roll.

"Stop bein' such a bloody doormat, dad! He's a scientist. Not the bloody Queen of England. No need to suck up t' him that much." Ouch. That was met with a grimace from Hermann and finally he managed to get a word in since Mr. Hansen senior had been shocked into silence at his own son's rudeness.

"Yes, I do happen to be the scientist who took care of your dog during your missions lately. No, I am indeed not the Majesty Queen of England and henceforth do not sport a fancy crown on my head or drift gear. But I do deserve some basic respect, still." His glare and speech were of course directed at Chuck who just crossed his arms and looked unimpressed while Hermann limped off mumbling curses, returning to the laboratories. 

"Bloody hell, Chuck! Ya were being a brat again. It's time ya grow up an' stop bein' rude t' people. Now I gotta see an' try if I can fix this. The Cherno Alpha Team were all lovesick about the guy so he's a good fella."

"Whatever, dad. Go suck up to the dag all ya want but I got better things to do. Come, Max. Let's go for a jog."

~~~~

Back in his lab, the doctor was listening to Sasha's music and no matter how much he had forbidden himself to cry, tears were flowing down his face, as he was leaning over the sink that was meant to wash off dangerous substances and looked into the slightly-dirty mirror. No matter how much he hid behind his reputation of being grumpy and unsocial, it did not ease the pain it caused when people did not value his work that mattered so much to him.

Especially Jaeger pilots. No matter if they were young and in a 'phase'. Hermann looked up to these people. When his dream of being an astronaut had been shattered with his diagnosis, they had become his idols. A symbol of hope that he had clawed to in despair as the human race was haunted by such enormous beasts that there was almost nobody who thought past the atmosphere when the monsters came from under the sea.

Numbers.

They were the reasons he was still alive. They had kept him going whenever there had been doubts. His eyes were all red and puffed up and when Vanessa called for a video-chat, he denied the request and wrote that he was currently not feeling well and would go to bed early. Even though sleep was not even an option when he was feeling this lost. It tended to elude him while he was in despair, so he spent the time he could not concentrate on his calculations with playing some old strategy games on his personal laptop, hoping times would be better.


	6. Things are more Prima in Lima

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~After finishing his projects in Sydney, he gets transferred once again not only meeting one Tendo Choi, but also meeting somebody he did not expect to meet there. Not to mention that our Dr. Gottlieb is very much clueless.~

Despite reconciliation attempts by Hercules, Dr. Gottlieb still gave the Hansens a wide berth, excluding Max. The bulldog was always welcome to join him in the lab for a belly rub or a short round of fetch before he returned to his calculations. The Australian science department was rather big though and since there was a shortage elsewhere, he was once again being shipped off. Hermann was starting to feel like a goddamn prostitute. Just that he was not selling out his body for a living, but rather his mind. As a teacher they at least had pretended that he was a person of extremely high respect. On the other side he was more than happy to get a change of scenery.  
  
So he was packing his bags once again but before he was finished doing so, a technician he was more or less getting along with brought him a rather large package. Mail from Russia with love, if one'd excuse the terrible movie reference in trade for it being the truth. With a mixture of both excitement and curiosity, he opened the package and took the letter he found first before looking at the contents of the box. It was only polite to do so.  
  
 _"Dear Comrade,_  
  
 _We miss you terribly and we were very happy to receive your letter._  
 _Aleksis is very impressed with your pretty handwriting. You really are_  
 _smart doctor and patron of arts. Which is why we thought to send some_  
 _nice things just in case they send you to other Shatterdome again._  
  
 _One never knows what is in future after all!_  
  
 _So we got very good Russian coat for doctor. Will keep you cozy, no matter_  
 _how cold or wet the weather. If too warm you can take out the inner layer._  
 _You might be too small for coat, but it will be alright._  
  
 _Also I made you cookies. And Aleksis insisted that we should get bear fur for_  
 _you but they would not let us ship it... Maybe other time._  
  
 _With many love, Kaidonovskaya & Kaidonovsky"_  
  
Chucking at their antics, he curiously looked inside the box and good lord. That coat was rather big. But did he really care? The answer was no, because it was the most comfortable article of clothing he owned, actually. Aside from the panties Vanessa had sent but he'd rather burn alive than admit that. Also he'd rather not have anyone know that most of the time he worse a pair of purple lace panties under his usual clothes because he'd never live it down, not even with today's advanced medicine.  
  
Trying one of Sasha's cookies, he continued packing and decided to save those up as special treats for himself because those sure were quite delicious.  
  
~~~~  
  
When he was adjusting the blackboards on his little part of the lab in Lima, Hermann almost had a heart attack when he suddenly heard the screechy sound of Newton's voice. Was he hallucinating? That could not be. Newton was in Anchorage. He had just written him that so how-  
  
" **Dude.** I know you're still pissed at me but like... ignoring me is like ten kinds of rude! _Herm? ..._ Your hearing did not crap out on you already, did it? I mean you look old but you're not that old." When the chatty biologist rambled on, Hermann actually could feel his blood pressure increase by the second. It was like pressing a button every time that man opened his mouth. Why did he have such a big effect on him?  
  
The piece of chalk he had just been wanting to neatly put on it's intended place at the blackboard crushed in his hand, making a white cloud of chalk dust explode over his hand and forearm. Slowly, he turned to look over his shoulder and there he was. Dr. Newton Geiszler as he lived, breathed and infuriated him. Including several new sets of tattoos corresponding with the new Kaiju attacks.  
  
"Why are you here? _You are not supposed to be here._ You should be in Anchorage." Was all the mathematician managed in a slightly breathless voice, unable to enjoy the wide-eyed look on his colleagues face at the exploded chalk. Apparently the other thought him to be a frail invalid just like everybody else. But he had once been healthy, physically and quite quick on his feet if one would believe it.  
  
Newt overshadowed his nervousness with chatting it seemed. "I got transferred because they put all the new science recruits over to Anchorage. Guess they want to create a potpourri of proper scientists over here, heh. So, how have you been aside from grumping over in Russia and Australia? Ready to kiss and make-up?" For emphasis he puckered his lips at Hermann and leaned against his desk, managing to actually miss it and land on the floor, making Hermann break out in a short barking, dry laugh.  
  
"The world would have to actually end for that to happen, Dr. Geiszler! Do not expect any niceties from me. If we have to share a workspace I will be professional as long as you are." And with that, he turned back around, picking a new piece of chalk from the small box, putting one on the bottom of every blackboard before scratching his chin a little in thought, which ended in chalk-dust all over his face. Funny enough it didn't show that much with how pale he was. Only Newton noticed it because he was still staring.  
  
"Would you stop looking at me like a preying animal already! it is getting on my nerves. Do something productive or annoy somebody else." Was snapped at the other scientist's direction before Hermann limped out of the lab to go fetch the pencils he had ordered from the stock room.  
  
~~~~  
  
In the stock room he met a young man who was also look for pencils. There was only one box left.  
  
"Oh. Sorry there, buddy. You must be Dr. Gottlieb, right? I'm Tendo Choi, Chief LOCCENT Officer. You can have the pencils if you just let me have three. Those would last me until the next shipment comes." Mr. Choi was holding out a hand to shake and Hermann hesitantly took it after checking his own for not being the one covered in chalk-dust.  
  
"Uhm.. Yes. Nice to finally meet you Mr. Choi, I have reviewed parts of your work before. It is good that somebody here still has proper manners. And that is a nice gesture. If the three pencils are not enough, simply visit me in the laboratory for more. It would not do for the Chief LOCCENT Officer to not have any." Dr. Gottlieb allowed himself a small smile and was met with an admittedly rather handsome smirk in return. Returning back to the lab with the pencils, he found a very detailed set of Kaiju genitals drawn on one of his blackboards. The screaming match between him and Newton could be heard through the whole section 12 hallway and people looked rather confused. Which changed quickly since this would be a very often re-occurring instance.  
  
  
~~~~  
  
"So, doc. What's the deal with you and the colorful little hipster scientist?" Tendo was stirring his coffee and grinning at the grumpy mathematician while asking his question with a raised eyebrow.  
  
Occasionally Hermann would have breakfast in the mess hall when he did not feel like watching Newt messily slurp down his cereal. It was not really a sight he enjoyed too much as he personally liked to consume food in very specific orderly rituals, sometimes even separating different ingredients.  
  
"He's annoying, infuriatingly unprofessional. Not to mention his lack of respect towards proper behavior and actual scientific work. Dr. Geiszler draws genitals on my blackboards and keeps hiding my things in the lab, listens to loud music and imitates my accent! It's simply unacceptable and- ... Why are you laughing?" That really was confusing him. Why was everybody so damn amused by this menace of a 'scientist' being terrible to him?  
  
"Man... I gotta start a betting pool. I'm gonna be rich one day."  
  
"A betting pool for what?!"  
  
Only more laughter followed and still no answer for a very much confused Hermann.


	7. Silent Agreements

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~Hermann and Newt have some similarities after all. Their slowly building friendship is still very much like trying to get two cacti to hug it out though.~

"Dude. You look like _shit._ "  
  
"Charming, Dr. Geiszler."  
  
Yes, Hermann was currently very much feeling like he belonged into a wooden box rather than a lab. nevertheless that did not mean he would allow it to stop him from working. So he was perched over his desk, barely able to make the necessary hand motion to use the graphical interface and once in a while ending up limping to the small bathroom not far from the lab to vomit.  
  
His immune system was not the best and it had not proven to be even worse when he was under great stress such as trying to figure out how to save the world from gigantic monsters, while constantly having to submit lab reports that told his superiors 'No new results. Still working on calculations'.  
  
"You should put a sliced lemon on your desk. The citrus smell helps against the nausea a bit." When given only a wry frown by the mathematician, Newton simply fetched a lemon from the tiny fridge on his side of the lab, cut it before putting it on his colleagues desk and grabbed one of the thin, almost skeletal wrists belonging to said man.  
  
"Just what do you think you are doing?" Was angrily hissed in reaction at the sudden touching. Especially since Newton had not asked permission first. Then again, the other never seemed to think much before doing such things. And while he did act vexed about it when Newton touched him, he did not mind nearly as much as when other people did so. Likely because Newton did not act like he was made out of sugar and knew how to touch him like a normal human being without causing him pain usually.  
  
"Stopping you from puking your insides out completely, _duh_. Acupressure can stimulate the nerves and stop sensations like nausea when done right. Now take deep breaths and try to lean back a little. Curling up like that will only aggravate your stomach." While obviously he'd like to argue with Newton much more than comply without protest, he was not in the state to. So he simply followed the instructions and trusted in Dr. Geiszler's knowledge of biology and medicine. Even if he'd never admit doing so out loud.  
  
It was a silent agreement they had. When Hermann was ill and not willing to put up with the overzealous medical staff, he would nonchalantly suffer until Newton noticed his woes and took care of him. And whenever Newton got injured, Dr. Gottlieb in return would take care of his wounds and not put the incidents in the reports unless there was unmistakable evidence or outside witnesses.  
  
The whole agreement situation had started with that day when Hermann's stomach lining had inflamed into a full-blown Gastritis from hell and he was a miserable heap of mathematician, barely able to sit at his desk. At first the ill scientist had tried to wave his colleague off when Newton had started mother-henning him.  
  
~~~~~  
  
"Will you stop fumbling around me already! I'm not a bedridden coma patient that needs to be tended to." Batting away Newton's short stocky hands that had offered to support him on his way over to his room, he sneered at the other man and curled into his parka, which proved to be quite useful as a source of warmth when ill. By god, he did miss the comforting embrace of Aleksis Kaidonovsky and the harsh but well-meaning voice of Sasha. He still wrote both of them letters regularly.  
  
"Seriously Herm. Being paler than a vampire... That ain't any good. You don't have to lay around all day, but it wouldn't hurt you to at least lay down a bit? You could do some stuff on your laptop if you need to do work?" No chance, Newt's hands were swatted away again. It was not easy to keep a workaholic from working. Even when aforementioned workaholic was about to fall from his desk chair. Newton could only roll his eyes at how goddamn stubborn that guy is. Though his stubbornness was rather adorable at times but you'd never hear that admitted that out loud.  
  
When Dr. Gottlieb actually did pass out at his desk due to his circulation going bad on him, Newton quickly got the specimen cart he never used because it couldn't hold the large weight of kaiju parts properly and quickly wheeled Hermann into his room, using the key from his coat pocket to open the door. Naturally it was not possible to keep himself from looking around a bit.  
  
This room was more personal than the one in the other Shatterdomes he had been to since they had been in Lima for quite a while now and kept getting things or bought some as a souvenirs. With glee, Dr. Geiszler noted that his colleague did own music CD's (how old fashioned!) and some really old PC games. Jesus fuck was that Civilization 2? _That thing was ancient!_ Oh shit an actual Nintendo DS! Like the really old one. _Damn._ Perhaps he should try a peace offering in the form of some old games if he could find some... Who'd have known that Hermann was into video games at all? Then again, nobody had ever asked him, so not many things were known about the closed-off mathematician in general.  
  
Once he had forced himself back to thinking about the owner of the room, Newt carefully managed to get Hermann on the bed and took off his shoes, which was rather easy since the mathematician did have rather delicate feet for a dude and wore his shoes a few sizes too large, probably to hide that exact fact. Closing the door, Newton decided to take a break and watch over his colleague, even if he'd get yelled at for being in here. With a small giggle he noted something about the sleeping scientist before going back to looking through the old games and CD's.  
  
"You actually do look younger when you sleep..."  
  
~~~~~  
  
When Hermann woke up and slowly turned his head to the right, the first sight he was greeted with, was Newton's skinny jean-clad arse while he was bending over to read the titles of the books in his lower shelf. "Are you looking to educate yourself, Dr. Geiszler?" Originally his quip had been laid out longer and more venomous but hey, he was still very much ill and resting.  
  
"I'll take that as a 'thank you Newton for dragging my unconscious ass into my room'. Seriously dude. You need some rest. I'll get you your laptop if you can't lay still, but at least have some of your tea." Newton got all wide-eyed in surprise when he noticed that Hermann was actually smiling at him. This was the first time he had seen the other smile in a not sarcastic or wry sense.  
  
"You haven't bothered me about my illness yet. Nor asked why I even applied to the PPDC in my condition." Some of the other younger scientists actually had dared to do so. Naturally Dr. Gottlieb had quickly shut them up with his usual flowery (harsh) ways but it had still hurt him.  
  
"Why would I? I mean, you haven't bothered me about my problems either, right? And we both do our work just fine. Even if once in a while we need a break or a hit in the back of the head. And you like, may be a grumpy old man but you _never_ make actual claims without proof and I can respect that. You don't just point fingers at my work anytime just because of how I look." By now Newt had moved a chair over so he could sit next to the bed and talk to Hermann while facing him rather than having his butt face him because that was kind of rude as he realized after a bit.  
  
With a shaky hand, the mathematician grabbed his reading glasses and his laptop and glanced at the other man over the rim in that very head-teacher kind of way that would look quite in-place in a cheesy porn with a dorky story line. Newton had to remind himself not to connect Hermann and porn in his head because that caused way too much confusion in his mind. "Alright then, I'll leave you to work. If you need something you know you can ding me anytime on PPDC-Messenger. Don't mind that my status is set on 'busy' it's always like that."  
  
Before Newton could say anymore though, Hermann had actually fallen back asleep with his glasses on and his hands on the keyboard of the computer. Okay that was sort of cute. In an annoying "old man with quirky habits"-way.   
  
Right. Perhaps it really was about time Newt had a break as well.  
  
~~~~~  
  
The other part of their agreement, Newton and his injuries, happened rather often. Usually when the biologist was being careless during a manic phase and listened to music on his headphones while working with scalpels, dropped heavy things on his feet (until Hermann nonchalantly bought him a steel-capped version of his boots to save his toes from further abuse) or even worse: Forget to put on gloves when touching acidic fluids. Naturally Dr. Geiszler knew very well how important gloves were, but they sometimes just slipped his overactive mind when his thoughts were flying around everywhere and nowhere at the same time.  
  
One time Newton had managed to spill kaiju blue over himself after slipping on some paper on the floor which ended with having to undress in the middle of the lab. And thank the almighty gods Hermann did not make any comments or laugh about his new tattoos or the fact that he was wearing kaiju-print boxer shorts. That sure raised his respect level for the other scientist by several notches.  
  
Which was why since the third incident, Dr. Gottlieb now glanced over to see if his colleague was properly protected against acids when he worked with specimens and would cough in a specific way to alarm him if that was not the case. As a small thanks, Newt now went to fetch new chalk for his buddy without asking when he noticed that the other scientist was writing with tiny scraps of chalk.  
  
 _Wait,_ buddy? .... It seemed that was the proper way to address each other now. Though Hermann used the more antiqued 'chum'. At least mentally nobody could tease him about using that. To everybody else, they still officially were colleagues and enemies. At least they thought so because the betting pool had seen a substantial rise ever since people had seen Newton grab chalk for Hermann and Dr. Gottlieb had been spotted getting a huge amount of acid-safe gloves for Newton on his way back to the lab from breakfast.  
  
Tendo was having so much fun nerd-watching whenever he was not having his eyes on the Jaegers or the LOCCENT technology.  
  
~~~~~  
  
Naturally their silent agreements and raised respect for each other did not mean that the fighting stopped. They still had fierce arguments that had their voices echoing through the lower levels of the Shatterdome and Hermann's wave of complaint forms were starting to pile Tendo's system, much to his chagrin.   
  
One day he was trying to discuss the matter with Marshal Pentecost who had by now retired from piloting Jaegers completely and was overseeing Lima for a while before visiting the other Shatterdomes. "Can't those two just fuck and get over with it? It's like they need a neon ad to get the hint. Damn." That only got a serious look from Stacker though and the discussion, as short as it was, ended there. Luckily LOCCENT Chief Technician Tendo Choi knew when to shut up and when a conversation partner was not willing to discuss something specific.


	8. Anchorage: Return of the Nerdlings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~Hermann and Newton have to deal with a whole group of young scientists. Obviously that tends to be chaotic business for the most part.~

And again they were being shipped off. Quite literally this time even, as they were transported in a big container along with their equipment and luggage. _How comfy._  
  
Hermann was clinging to his ladder as that was the only place he felt safe at while in there and Newton had hidden under his desk. "Dude. We are being shipped like animals. That is no way to treat your top K-Scientists! Like... hell no!"  
  
"Not very eloquently put Dr. Geiszler but I quite agree with you for onc-  ARGH! WILL YOU STOP SHAKING THIS CONTAINER AROUND YOU Y- ... DU MIESER BASTARD!" Shouting at the pilot was a good if useless way to vent since the guy couldn't hear them through the thick metal casing of the container. At least it had an airing system so they didn't end up choking.  
  
When they hit a few air turbulences, Hermann got quite queasy and by the end of the flight they were both cowering under Newton's desk, with the owner of the desk rubbing Dr. Gottlieb's back carefully in an attempt to make the queasiness at least somewhat tolerable.  
  
Until they finally arrived in Anchorage, at least. As soon as the hatch on their container opened the pilot was met with angry German swearing coming from one very infuriated Dr. Gottlieb and nervous excuses by Newton who told him that Hermann wasn't good with flying under these conditions.   
  
"Next they are going to put us in cages and make us produce the electricity for our labs as well." Was sneered by the mathematician as he moved his blackboards in place with some minor help from Newton. They had started to become more and more of a duo and were rarely seen apart from each other these days. The betting pool might have spread all the way to Vladivostock and Sydney as well. It was a desperate time and people needed even the most ridiculous things to distract themselves from the war. And if it was betting on nerd-love.  
  
"Oh shit- Tell them to cancel that plan! I don't have enough candles to even see my own ass if we have to deal with constant darkness." Well at least that got a small laugh from Hermann. Joke success. Now where did he put his headlight?  
  
... Ah. There is was. When Newton looked up from the box he had looked in, he was faced with the sight of Hermann on his knees, bending over to lock the wheels of his biggest blackboard by stemming himself on the switch with his full weight. Which happened to make his ridiculous too-big pants actually pull close to his dainty little backside.  
  
Ohshit. Danger. Willing himself to look at a fascinating (very boring) spot of moss that was growing on their ceiling, he managed to avoid popping a flagpole in the lab. Thank god. He'd rather not have his colleague make comments about getting off on Kaiju parts. There were enough rumors about that already thankyouverymuch.   
  
~~~~~  
  
Once the _nerdlings,_ as Newton had dubbed the younger scientists, arrived things got tense. One of them seemed to be trying to put moves on Hermann, which was totally not making Newt feel like slaying that dude with an axe. Totally not! Not even a bit. Okay maybe just a tiny bit. With a war cry.  
  
And two of the others kept fucking pointing out when he got flustered and made a big show about it. It was getting really fucking old. And to add insult to the injury, antisocial grumpy old-man scientist Hermann was actually getting along with the nerdlings. What the fuck. Newton could not even begin to get that.  
  
'Mr. Boombastic' ,a.k.a. the guy flirting with Dr. Gottlieb, was offering a new piece of chalk to Hermann again and Newton just exploded. "Fuck you! Herm's not an invalid he can get chalk himself if he needs it or ask with a grumpy look. Learn his boundaries or get the fuck out, man. Don't be a dickhead!"  
  
Despite what most people would expect, Hermann was very much amorous towards that particular outburst and smirked to himself. Because while he did get along with the whippersnappers mostly, he had been rather annoyed by the way this one had been trying to 'flirt' with him.  
  
Help was only appreciated when he asked for it or direly needed it obviously. Otherwise he very much took offense to it. Newton seemed to be one of the few people who understood that. And while Dr. Newton Geiszler was still very much an annoying ridiculous idiot, he was also a good friend and valued colleague by now.  
  
The other scientists took some distance from them after that outburst by Newton and both Newt and Hermann were perfectly fine with that. They did not need other company to do their work efficiently.  
  
~~~~~  
  
Newton's joke about candlelight science actually turned out not to be that funny after all when they lost power in the lower levels of the Shatterdome. Hermann had taped a flashlight to his shoulder so he could still write on his blackboard and Newton was struggling with his headlamp because he looked around too erratically to be able to work efficiently like this.  
  
So after a while, Hermann took pity on the biologist and gave him his flashlight in exchange for lending the headlamp. It was easier for him to handle with his steady writing anyways under these conditions and Dr. Geiszler had a bigger cone of light to work in.  
  
When the batteries failed once in a while it got quite chaotic and one time they actually ended up crashing together in the dark, landing on the floor in a heap of limbs with an estranged cry coming from Hermann. "Oh crap! You okay, dude? Ow..."  
  
"... Yes. I only bruised a little I believe. If you could lend me your hand I will be back on my feet in a moment." In the dark it was a bit more awkward to untangle and Newton actually got a pointy knee in his nuts. Thank god it was not a hard collision.  
  
"Herm, watch the jewels!"  
  
"No thank you if implied literally and if you were referring to my accidental move, I believe you sufficiently cause damage to your testes with those skinny jeans without my help." It was a good thing it was dark because Hermann currently had a hard time fighting that huge grin from spreading over his face. Yes, he did have fun during his banter with Newton. Why not?  
  
"Rude! Also the most unsexy way to refer to balls ever, man."  
  
"If it makes you feel more 'sexy' I can call them nuts. It would be about as appropriate as jewels, size-based."  
  
"Ow. Right in the ego... I bet you just say that because it goes for yourself."  
  
"Naturally. I have no false delusions of grandeur about my genitals."  
  
"... "  
  
"Indeed. And now help me up already this floor is cold!"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next chapter will be longer, I just had to get this out of my system


	9. Using Science

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ~Both Newton realizes that he simply had been going about this all wrong from the beginning. Time to remedy that.~

People who only had an outsider perspective to their relationship, often thought that Newton and Hermann either terribly hated each other, or were like a married couple annoyed by each other's constant presence. Neither one was true. Well the annoyed part was sometimes true, but they had never once hated each other for a second, really. Not even during their fight at the conference. They simply did not communicate on the same wavelength which caused irritation.  
  
Where Hermann spoke in polite, precise language and wished to discuss formal matters, Newton would tell you that 'dude, you totally need to watch Daitetsujin 17! It's fucking amazing!'. As much as they actually enjoyed each other's company, they repelled each other with their differences and they continued to do so terribly, until the faithful day of July the 14th, 2018 when Newton was watching a documentary on his laptop while his current samples were being analyzed by the big lap computer on his side of the room. After listening to the narrator go on about the fascinating traits of the domestic chicken, he glanced up at Hermann while his colleague was currently perched awkwardly on his ladder and stretching his arm to reach the far left side of his blackboard.  
  
That was when the idea started to grow in Newton's head. And when an idea is planted, it is hard to shake off.  
  
//I should study Mr. Grumpypants. Perhaps I can find out how not to piss him off as much and even how to make amends with him when I do! Fuck yes. Newt, you're a genius! I just need to set down the research parameters...//  
  
A few minutes later, his laptop carried a filed called _Gottlieb, H_. next to the ones named _Trespasser, Hundun, Kaiceph, Scissure_ etc.  
  
It was taking  lot of concentration writing down the known info about Hermann as if he was a Kaiju specimen he was studying without giggling. Since obviously Dr. Gottlieb was not a gigantic monster aiming to destroy Earth or generally an unknown species, Newton used an NPC sheet from a Pen-and-Paper RPG to jot down his research notes about Hermann. If the mathematician knew about this, he would likely violently protest being examined under such a non-scientific scheme.  
  
 _Name/Alias: Gottlieb, Hermann (Middle name/s?)_  
 _Age: 29 going on 60 (mentally)_  
 _Class: Max Level Grumpy Math-Wiz_  
 _Gender: Male(?) Never asked about actual Identity._  
 _Height: 5'9"_  
 _Weight: Needs to eat more, didn't try and put him on a scale_  
 _Eyes: Pretty, color brown also fuck those lashes_  
 _Hair: Dumb haircut, brown_  
 _Skin: Dracula/Computer screen tan. Cute wrinkles, likely caused by dehydration and stress._  
  
 _Abilities:_  
 _STR (Strength): .... Changes daily I think? Getting hit by his cane hurts._  
 _DEX (Dexterity): Same as strength. Sometimes writes faster than an angry secretary and then can barely hold chalk._  
 _CON (Constitution): Butterfly-wings with a hint of glass bones. But stubbornness makes up for it so I'd say he gets a +3 modification._  
 _INT (Intelligence): 20 out of 10. Should really consider offering his pretty brain for science after hopefully prolonged happy life._  
 _WIS (Wisdom): ... I'm the wrong person to judge that but more than me. Usually at least._  
 _CHA (Charisma): Like conversing with a grumpy hedgehog. Rolls in and does those spiky, clicky hissy jumps. You know. 'Go away'-style._  
  
//Gonna leave out HP and that stuff. And defense. Because we all know he has a lot of that. My shin still hurts from that hit yesterday.//  
  
While typing away on his laptop, Newton occasionally glanced up at his current study subject and watched him climb the ladder, write, climb down to note his progress on actual PAPER (seriously) and climb back up. Instead of just using a dictation machine and saving himself the trouble? ....  
  
 _Correction to WIS (Wisdom): Too damn stubborn to use gained wisdom properly 90% of time._

 _Attacks_  
 _Melee: Cane_  
 _Total= OWOWOWOW = Base Attack Bonus OWOW + German Fury Modifier OW + Nerd Rage OW_  
  
 _Ranged: Verbal Assault_  
 _Total= -OW = Knocking Biology OW + Stupid adorable accent -OW + Funny German swear words -OW_  
  
Yes, Dr. Geiszler knew that was not exactly objective but hey, this was not a work related project... So he allowed himself to have a few laughs while working out how grumpy fellow nerd worked. Naturally Newton had worked with all sorts of scientists before, but none of them had been quite as easy to infuriate as Dr. Gottlieb. If you even dared to mention chamomile tea in his presence he went into a fury spree of explaining of chamomile is the worst insult one can direct at one's taste buds. Harsh.  
  
But also kind of adorable. I mean getting that worked up over a blend of tea? Really?  
  
 _Skills_  
 _(x) Climb (Ladders. Stairs do critical damage.)_  
 _(x) Handle Animal [Seen playing with lab rats while I had back turned]_  
 _(x) Move Silently [Sneaky as hell. Unless when his shoes squeak or bad days with more weight distributed on cane.]_  
 _(x) Languages [Observed English, German, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Dutch, French, Hungarian and Yiddish. has been spotted reading a book in Armenian.]_  
  
And that was it for now. This was seriously all that Newt knew about his lab partner. Kinda sad considering they knew each other since 2013. Five years and Newton did not know that much more than anyone else. With a tiny sigh, he rubbed his temples and watched the mathematician angrily scrub at some numbers that had probably offended him by simply existing. How the hell does on get on this guy's good side?  
  
Wait. He sort-of got along with Tendo, didn't he? As soon as he had another phase of not needing to do anything in the lab, Newt made up an excuse about wanting more candy and went to look for the Chief LOCCENT Technician to needle him with some questions.  
  
~~~~~~  
  
"Sorry, Newt. But I don't think I can help you."  
  
Was the deflating answer he got when asking for help. No way. Not giving up that easily!  
  
"Awww come on dude! Just give me a hint? I mean I know I annoy him when I talk too much at once and I have been working on that a tiny bit so I can at least shut it after a while by distracting myself but I gotta know what to do when I bug it up. Please?"  
  
With a grin Tendo offered him a doughnut and crossed his arms, thinking for a moment. "Okay then. Maybe you should try finding out his interests and go from there? I doubt even Dr. Gottlieb is without weak spots. When he comes by the hall for lunch he usually has a an e-reader with him. Finding out what books he's into is gonna increase finding a topic that won't piss him off. Unless you're jabbing at it wro-"  
  
"Thanks dude! I think I know what I can do." Before Tendo even got a chance to finish his sentence, the biologist had dashed off. Shaking his head, the technician looked over to one of his coworkers with raised eyebrows. "Anymore raises on the bets?"  
  
  
~~~~~~  
  
When Hermann had limped off for his usual spartanic lunch consisting of soup and a bit of bread of he felt like it, Newton moved over to the tidy side of the lab that was obviously not his and snuck a look at Hermann's computer. The personal one he always had resting at his desk next to the big graphical interface.

It was booted up and not shut off as it was defragmenting. Wow ancient operating system. And even more so ancient programs, ancient games. Newton had not seen 90% of those things since 2005-ish.  
  
But what did delight him was that Hermann actually did own games. A LOT of computergames actually. Just the genres Newton did not play. Mainly Strategy, Manager, Simulation and Roleplaying games that Dr. Geiszler simply was not able to concentrate on. Some of those he knew because they were legendary for being difficult as hell to play (Like Masters of Orion 3 with it's DOZENS of hard to get through menus etc.)  
  
Noting some of the names he did not know down, Newt went on to take a look at the music saved on the hard drive and damn his jaw dropped. Classical music? Expected.  
  
Medieval Folk, Nu-Metal, Gothic music of different sub-types and some other things as well, were not. Naturally he hadn't really believed that Hermann only listed to one style of music but that was a lot more eclectic than he would have thought. More notes were made and he barely managed to get back on his place and feign innocence before the owner of said interesting music collection returned.  
  
".... Newton! Did you touch my pencils again?!"  
  
Well shit.  
  
Small sacrifices had to be made for science. So he just took a deep breath and endured the angry rant that followed on how he should get his own pencils and stop messing up Hermann's 'index'.  
  
~~~~~~  
  
When later that day Newt had gone out to fetch some of his usual sugar-bombs that he called snacks, Hermann noticed that there was an envelope on his desk that had not been there before. A report? Research paper? Carefully he picked it up and opened it to discover that it did not contain paper but rather two discs addresses at him.  
  
As much at he liked to point out to everybody that he was far more controlled than Newt, he was still a scientist and curiosity was burning him up. Before long the first disc had been booted up and he was staring in awe at the various folders containing music.

Music? Who would give him music? ....  Carefully he clicked through a few of the songs and noted they were part of his favorite genres and while he did not like all of the songs, most were quite good and he saved them into his collection. In the last folder there was a text file.  
  
"A little gift of apology,    
because I piss you off so often  
~Newt"  
  
That was really unexpected and also rather considerate of his colleague. While said fellow scientist was hunting for donuts and candy bars, Hermann immersed himself in the sweet melodies of Illuminate. To his dismay he ended up being so relaxed that he slipped into a dreamless sleep, perched in his desk chair.  
  
Newt when he returned did a double take, covering his mouth to keep himself from making sound and very carefully covered Dr. Gottlieb his with his parka so he didn't get cold. Sitting down at his cluttered desk, the biologist smiled and mentally congratulated himself that he got to see Hermann truly relaxed for the first time ever. It was interesting to see how much younger he looked like this when he didn't wrinkle up his face and sneer.  
  
When Hermann woke up, his music still playing, he seemed embarrassed. But Newt simply didn't comment on his nap or the music and just offered him some tea and asked him if he wanted to try and trade for some good coffee later since there was going to be a shipment today. It seemed to put him at ease that the focus was turned off him. And so Newton slowly learned to understand.

But it always takes two, and now it was Dr. Gottlieb's mission to try and learn some patience and control his anger.


End file.
